March

Lawyers Journal

Lawyers seek millions more in legal aid funds at Walk to Hill

Hundreds of lawyers from across Massachusetts converged on the
Statehouse Jan. 26 to implore their legislators for $14.5 million
in civil legal aid funding in the fiscal 2013 budget.

The Massachusetts Legal Assistance Corporation called for a $5
million increase over the $9.5 million appropriated last year,
though $1 million was added later as part of a supplemental budget
to bring the fiscal 2012 total to $10.5 million.

The 13th annual Walk to the Hill for Civil Legal Aid featured a
surprise visit from Lt. Gov. Tim Murray, who told a
standing-room-only crowd in the Great Hall of Flags that he is con
dent the governor will sign a supplemental budget to increase
MLAC's funding this current fiscal year "because he believes in
what you do.

"You represent people who have been disenfranchised …You make sure
they are heard," Murray said. "Thank you for your advocacy."

In the past four years alone, MLAC has seen its funding from the
Interest on Lawyers' Trust Accounts drop from $17 million to just
over $3 million. At a time when the number of Massachusetts
residents qualifying for civil legal aid has jumped 11 percent, to
just under 1 million people, MLAC has reduced its staff attorneys
by 34 percent.

"The free lunch from IOLTA is gone," Supreme Judicial Court
Associate Justice Ralph D. Gants said. "The legal problems of the
poor have not dwindled. They, too, have grown."

Gants said there is no way to ask for less than a $5 million
increase, which he considers a "sound investment" for the
commonwealth. "Legal services ensure the promise of justice for all
is more than just a promise," he said.

MBA President Richard P. Campbell commended the governor for
stepping up and recommending $12 million for MLAC for fiscal 2013,
but said it's not enough.

"Legal service organizations throughout the state are being pushed
to their breaking point as they are faced with drastic cuts in
IOLTA funds and an ever increasing need for services," he said.
"The sad truth is that the resources fall short of the need for
legal aid."

Increased funding is critical to restore service levels and
prevent further cuts to legal aid programs, as they have been
struggling to meet demand due to a 78 percent decrease in revenue
since scal 2008 in IOLTA funding.

Without the help of Greater Boston Legal Services, Remon Jourdan
of Randolph would never have been able to fix a discrepancy between
MassHealth and his doctor that left his personal care attendants
without pay for one month. Jourdan, who has been confined to a
wheelchair since a car accident 10 years ago, said GBLS was able to
convince MassHealth to retroactively pay his attendants.

"It was like a weight lifted from my shoulders," Jourdan said. "I
know it might not seem like a big case, but for me it was
huge."

The event was sponsored by the MBA, Equal Justice Coalition and
Boston Bar Association, and co-sponsored by 30 county and specialty
bar associations.